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Lady Frost

by Shataina

"She ... did ... what ... with the invitation I sent her?!"

~ Resplendent Dreams of Seraphim, proprietor of the Bower of the Mask

"That little God-Blood cut this gem? Damn! Where in Creation did she learn her trade? I couldn't have done a better job myself. ... Don't you go telling anyone that last bit, mind."

~ Copper Wind, famed gemcutter of the Bale of Stars, to his aide Silver Wren

On the end of an otherwise unremarkable street in the Bastion district stands a tall white spire -- far taller than any other building on the street, and as seeming-unsubstantial as the clouds themselves. This tower is one of the very rare Manses in Nexus that is not in the magic-ridden area of Interwoven Avenue, and is all the more coveted for that. Until roughly fifteen years ago, the Manse had stayed in the same outcaste Dragon-Blooded family for generations; but they fell upon hard times and had to move, and a new resident -- Ishira -- moved in.

"Ishira", in the language most frequently spoken in Nexus, means merely "Frost". Her name is clearly an epithet, but she has taken no other, and she's so dignified and regal that it seems almost impossible to try to give her a nickname. And so Lady Frost she remains. Tall and exquisitely delicate, with very white skin and very white hair that perhaps reflect the origins of her name, Ishira is a known God-Blood -- and a powerful one. She prefers to attire herself in black or grey; the only colour about her lies in the faint coppery highlights that shimmer in her hair and the almost-imperceptible rainbow sparkle to her eyes. Also, there is the small matter of her sword -- a long katana formed apparently of copper light, Ishira wields it with consummate skill. And yet it is not fighting that she's most famous for (although her skill is no small matter); she is mainly a healer, and a jeweller of supernatural skill.

Once a week, Lady Frost takes herself to a public place and performs healings, free of charge. For that day, she will provide the services of a trained doctor to those who need her help; and occasionally, if they have been stricken with wounds, she simply passes her hands over the skin and heals the damage. Somehow, she has the force of personality to keep supplicants in an orderly queue, and the Nexians themselves -- miraculously -- manage to stay quiet and nonthreatening during these times, perhaps understanding that the service she provides is too precious to jeopardize. Most of those who seek her help come from the lower classes, but occasionally wealthier or more powerful individuals come to these public healings -- and if they are rude enough to attempt to use their status to jump to the head of the line, they are rudely awakened by her calm refusal to help them until their "proper turn". Once or twice, there have actually been threats in such cases -- but when the arrogant threatener realizes that he is facing not only Ishira but what could quite easily turn into a supporting mob of angry Nexians, he tends to subside.

Ishira has also been known to lend her fighting prowess in aid to those who request and deserve her help. She has destroyed minor demons, thaumaturges, and has even defeated evil Dragon-Blooded and weak Abyssal Exalted, earning a reputation that stretches throughout the Scavenger Lands. She has an excellent sense of her own limits, but she's surprisingly capable -- a particularly nasty shock to Yozi-worshipping Dragon-Blooded accustomed to considering themselves far above mere God-Blooded. It is rare for her to turn down a request; when she does, she frequently merely observes, "You do not need my help," and she is always right.

Alongside these accomplishments, she is primarily a jeweller, and spends the vast majority of her time working; this is what she seems to like to do best. Ishira has long since closed her shop on the Street of Queens, and now accepts only commissions, of which there are plenty, particularly since she is quite capable of creating magical items (mechanically: artifacts of level 1-2). Her prices are high, but always fair; she will also accept pieces of intriguing lore or favours from powerful beings in lieu of money. With no assistants or helpers, she completes all projects alone, in the studio located at the top of her Manse.

Though evidently rich, and not at all socially awkward, Ishira is quiet and reclusive. Her voice is soft and controlled, and she never raises it; no one has ever seen her lose her temper. Indeed, for such an evidently compassionate and caring woman, Ishira shows little emotion; some find this intriguing, some confusing, and a rare few see it as a challenge. It has become something of a game among the Nexus élite to attempt to: get her to come to social gatherings -- the more salacious the better; persuade her to throw a party in her enormous Manse; or best of all, seduce her. No one has yet actually managed either of the latter two, and although occasionally she will attend dinners, she has served up humiliating refusals to those who invite her to "other events". The most famous example: when sent an invitation to the Bower of the Mask for an extremely exclusive orgy, she actually sold the invitation on the open market and bought new materials with the proceeds. Of late, Nexian high society has grown bored with her imperviousness and has largely abandoned the attempt to get through to her -- but anyone who managed (or claimed to manage) the feat would be an instant celebrity, particularly if they found out any interesting facts (such as her parentage) that they could gleefully spread about the gossip market afterwards.

Rumours

• Ishira's supernatural parent is not a god, but something far less wholesome. Ishira betrayed him and left his service because she could not bring herself to follow his evil commands, and it is only a matter of time before his terrifying retribution destroys her -- though whether this retribution will take (or has already taken) the form of a vicious curse, her temporal ruin, or her mere death by assassination remains to be seen.
• Delos Ferrano is such a playboy and cad because he is secretly, desperately in love with Ishira, heartbroken by her continued rebuffs, and trying to lose himself in sensual excess in order to forget her. (This rumour is a rare version of a "meta-rumour" that has also claimed that Delos Ferrano is in love with dozens of other women or less socially acceptable things, including: one of the Dejeune brothers; an unnamed city spirit that has domain over Sentinel's Hill; and his own cat.)

Secret

Ishira's sword, Mercy's Fury, is an artifact of legendary power -- and one of the best-kept secrets in the world. This is partly because Mercy's Fury was just recently constructed -- no one has ever borne it but she -- and partly because Ishira does her level best to cover up the katana's effects. Mercy's Fury is possessed of a limited sentience, and is capable of not only resonating with mercy (mechanically, telling Ishira someone's Compassion score) and informing Ishira whether someone actually needs her help, but can actually, when utilized correctly, make the merciless merciful -- mechanically, this permanently raises their Compassion score. Ishira keeps this secret as well as she can because she knows that there are some very powerful entities who would prefer that such an artifact be entirely destroyed -- but every time she uses it, it becomes obvious that she did something to the formerly-merciless bastard who is now a sobbing heap on the floor, and it's only a matter of time before someone figures out that it's her sword that does it and not (as she claims) mere persuasion or a supernatural technique that she herself has learned.

More information about Ishira "as written", including history, statistics and specifics, can be found on her character page.

Comments

LOL!!! I can just picture the look of shock on Sera's face...someone actually told her no. ;o) Great character. Dreaming Nymph

Thank you.  :) Sera struck me as the kind of person it would be fun to snub. <grin>
~ Shataina